Daniel Radcliffe reveals whether he would return in the titular role for a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie. Based on J.K. Rowling's popular book series of the same name, the blockbuster film franchise kicked off in 2001 with The Sorcerer's Stone. At the time they were cast as the faces of the franchise, the trio of Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint were completely unknown. By the time the film saga concluded in 2011, the franchise had made stars out of all three of them.
Since then, interest in seeing the franchise's Golden Trio return to their roles has been high. One way that could happen is a film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a stage play written by Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany set 19 years after the events of The Deathly Hallows. Chris Columbus, who directed the first two Harry Potter films, has already expressed interest in making a Cursed Child movie, saying the original trio's return would be "cinematic bliss" equivalent to Star Wars heavyweights returning for The Force Awakens.
However, in a new interview with The New York Times, Radcliffe revealed he isn't quite ready to return to Hogwarts yet. When asked about Columbus' comments and the prospect of a Cursed Child movie, the actor regrettably shot down the idea, admitting it's not something he's "really interested in doing right now." Though Potterheads can still hold out hope, as Radcliffe is "never going to say never," considering it took "the Star Wars guys like 30, 40 years before they went back." Read his full comment down below:
This isn't the answer that anybody's going to want, but I think I was so able to go back and enjoy it because it's not a part of my day-to-day life anymore. I'm getting to a point where I feel like I made it out of Potter okay and I'm really happy with where I am now, and to go back would be such a massive change to my life. I'm never going to say never, but the Star Wars guys had like 30, 40 years before they went back. For me, it's only been 10. It's not something I'm really interested in doing right now.
It's understandable Radcliffe may not want to return to Harry Potter so soon. As touched upon in the 20th-anniversary reunion Return to Hogwarts, the pressure of making the movies and all of the fame associated with them was an incredibly taxing experience for the three stars. The pressure even led Watson to consider quitting at one point. This isn't to say the three stars are ungrateful for the incredible opportunity they had and would never be interested in returning, but rather they are currently content with the work they put into the franchise. Radcliffe is also busy experimenting with other roles, such as The Lost City and an intriguing Weird Al biopic.
Even if Radcliffe was interested in returning, he would only be one-third of the recipe required for a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie to work. Despite rumors of Watson's retirement being untrue, the actress still appears to be taking a break from acting, and it's unclear when she will return. Rupert, on the other hand, seems open to the idea if everyone else is on board. Since it doesn't appear that will be happening any time soon, Harry Potter fans can still look forward to the new Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore releasing in theaters on April 15.
Source: NYT
